Air Europa left as only Spanish airline flying direct to Cuba

When one airline is the only nonstop Spanish option to Cuba, every cancellation and fare bump hits harder. That is the reality now on the Madrid-Havana corridor, where Air Europa has become the last Spanish carrier still flying direct after Iberia, World2Fly and Cubana de Aviación dropped out.

Iberia’s pullback is the biggest blow for summer planning. The airline’s own update says its Havana service is cancelled from June 1 to October 24, 2026, and that affected bookings include tickets bought up to April 13, 2026. The retreat was gradual, with frequencies falling from three weekly flights in April to two in May and then to none in June. Iberia says it is offering alternatives to impacted customers, but for travelers who depended on a nonstop Madrid-Havana seat, the route has suddenly become much thinner.

Cubana de Aviación also lost its only weekly service after Plus Ultra, its leasing partner, stepped back because of risks tied to the May 1 executive order from the White House. That order imposed new Cuba-related sanctions over what Washington described as repression in Cuba and threats to U.S. national security and foreign policy. World2Fly’s exit removed another option from the market, leaving Air Europa carrying the Spanish side of the route almost alone.

Air Europa is still advertising regular flights from Madrid to Havana and flight-schedule trackers show three weekly direct services. The carrier is also using a refueling stop in Santo Domingo on the return leg, a workaround that has become more important as Jet A-1 shortages squeeze operations in Cuba. An aviation notice in February said Jet A-1 would be unavailable for a month at Cuba’s nine international airports, including José Martí International Airport in Havana.

There is still another direct option on paper: Air China, which operates the Beijing-Madrid-Havana routing. But for Spanish-origin travelers, the market has clearly narrowed. That matters for fares, because fewer seats usually mean less competition; it matters for rebooking, because there are fewer same-day alternatives when a flight slips; and it matters most in summer, when Cuba-bound demand from families, tour operators and the diaspora in Spain is hardest to absorb.

The wider picture is just as ugly. Official tourism figures cited locally put Cuba at 496,858 international arrivals by February 2025, down 29.1% year on year, and ONEI figures showed Cuban tourism down about 25% in the first half of 2025. With at least eleven airlines having suspended or reduced flights so far in 2026, Air Europa’s survival on this route is not a footnote. It is the last Spanish bridge still holding, and it is carrying a lot more pressure now.